Vacuum cleaner attachment for rotary lawnmowers

ABSTRACT

An attachment is disclosed for converting a rotary type lawnmower to a vacuum cleaner for picking up debris, such as grass cuttings, from sidewalks, driveways, and the like. The attachment includes a baffle member for positioning across the opening in the bottom of the housing of the rotary cutter blade. The baffle member has an opening through which air is pulled by the rotating cutter blade to lift and entrain debris from a sidewalk, driveway, or the like, and carry it into the housing for discharge through the discharge port of the housing. Means are provided for releasably attaching the baffle member to the housing so that the baffle can be attached when it is desired for the mower to act as a vacuum cleaner and removed when the mower is to function in the normal manner.

This application is a division of my prior application Ser. No. 293,593,filed Aug. 17, 1981," entitled "Vacuum Cleaner Attachment for RotaryLawnmowers," which was a continuation-in-part of my prior applicationSer. No. 003,284 filed Jan. 15, 1979, entitled "Vacuum CleanerAttachment for Rotary Lawnmowers", now U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,331, whichwas a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 680,486 filed Apr.26, 1976, entitled "Vacuum Cleaner Attachment for Rotary Lawnmowers,"now abandoned.

This invention relates to a lawnmower attachment for converting a rotarytype lawnmower to a vacuum cleaner to remove debris from sidewalks,driveways, and the like.

Lawn maintenance usually involves mowing the grass, edging the grassalong sidewalks and driveways, and cleaning the cut grass and otherdebris, such as dirt and leaves, from the sidewalks and driveways. Thislatter operation is commonly done by sweeping this debris into one ormore piles where it can be picked up and removed. There are specialvacuum cleaners on the market that can be used for this purpose also.

By far, the majority of lawnmowers in use today are of the rotary typewhich employ a rotating propeller type blade moving in a horizontalplane to cut grass. The rotating blades of most of these mowers haveknife edge cutting surfaces adjacent their outer tips that are flat onbottom and tapered on top so they will act as fan blades and pull airupwardly past the blades. The air so moved is useful in pulling thegrass upwardly into the cutting edge of the blade and in pulling the cutgrass upwardly into the housing where it can be discharged with themoving air into a receptacle out the side of the mower housing.

There is, however, a considerable amount of turbulence created in theair by such a rotating blade. The moving cutting edge forces some airupwardly but it also pushes air ahead, down, and to the side toward theside wall of the housing. A portion of the air pushed ahead and towardthe side walls will move downwardly rather than upwardly. When cuttinggrass, this air will carry some of the cuttings downwardly out of thehousing, but the amount is usually not sufficient to be objectionable.When a mower is moved over a sidewalk or driveway, however, thisdownward flow of air is very evident, as cuttings, dirt, etc. on thesesurfaces is scattered to all sides. Some, of course, is pulled up intothe housing, but the amount left is such that sweeping is stillrequired.

It is an object of this invention to provide an attachment for rotarytype lawnmowers that will convert the lawnmower to a very efficientvacuum cleaner to pick up the debris from a sidewalk, driveway, or thelike sufficiently that hand sweeping is not necessary.

It is another object of this invention to provide an attachment for alawnmower that will direct the flow of air upwardly into the housing ofthe lawnmower so that little, if any, scattering of the debris, even thevery light grass cuttings, will occur.

These and other objects, advantages, and features of this invention willbe apparent to those skilled in the art from a consideration of thisspecification, including the attached drawings and appended claims.

IN THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a rotary type lawnmower with oneembodiment of the attachment of this invention mounted thereon toconvert the lawnmower into a very effective vacuum cleaner;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the lawnmower of FIG. 1, taken along line2--2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view taken along line 3--3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of a lawnmower having the attachmentof this invention attached thereto, showing an alternate method forattaching the attachment to the mower; and

FIGS. 5-63 are views of various alternate embodiments of the attachmentof this invention and certain specific features thereof.

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross section through a typical rotary lawnmower.The mower is shown more or less schematic, and as will be the case inthe Figures showing other embodiments of this invention, only theessential parts of the mower and attachment will be shown. The mower ofFIG. 1 includes motor 10 mounted on housing 11 which is supported formovement over the ground by wheels 12. Housing 11 includes upper plate11a which supports the motor and downwardly extending generallycylindrical skirt 11b which combines with plate 11a to form chamber 14in which is located mower blade 15. Output shaft 16 of motor 10 extendsthrough plate 11a and supports through the opening in the bottom of thehousing. The downward flow of air or spillage of air from chamber 14 inthe conventional rotary type mower is what causes much of the scatter ofdebris when a running mower is moved across a sidewalk or the likewithout the attachment of this invention. By providing the baffle memberwith the portion extending inwardly, such as the portion of plate 21between the side wall and the opening in plate 21, so that a portion ofthe outer tips of the blade are more or less enclosed, much of the aircompressed between the tips of the blade and the walls of the housing ofthe mower will be prevented from flowing downwardly out of chamber 14 toscatter the debris away from the mower. There will, of course, continueto be this compression of air, but the inward flow of air throughopening 21 will be such that this air will flow into the upwardly movingstream of air and be carried out of the chamber without causing anyextraneous air currents that interfere with the proper vacuuming of asurface, such as a sidewalk.

The size of opening 21 should be such that it is compatible with theopening between plate 20 and the surface being vacuumed through whichthe air must travel to reach opening 21. This passageway or duct whichencircles opening 21 will be referred to herein as the horizontal ductleading to opening 21. It is one that reduces in size as the air movesinwardly toward the opening. In other words, there is less space for theair to flow through adjacent the opening than there is at the outer edgeof the plate. Thus, a given volume of air moving through the horizontalduct will increase in velocity as it approaches opening 21, andgenerally it is desirable that this increase in velocity be maintainedas the air moves upwardly through the opening so that the debrisentrained in the air will not tend to fall out at this point. Therefore,preferably the size of opening 21 should be such that the velocity ofair moving through the horizontal duct is not unduly decreased as itmoves through opening 21.

In accordance with this invention, means are provided to releasablyattach the baffle member to the housing of the mower when it is desiredto convert the mower into a vacuum cleaner for cleaning a sidewalk andthe like. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and as best seen inFIG. 3, plate 20 is provided with four equally spaced ears 23 to each ofwhich is attached eye bolt 24 and spring 25. Four eye bolts 26 areattached to upper plate 11a and positioned to be above ears 23 when theplate is installed in place under the housing. Each spring has hook 25ato connect to eye bolt 26 and support plate 20 in position across thebottom of the housing. If desired, each ear can be provided with lug 27to engage the outer surface of the sidewall of the mower housing to holdthe plate centered with respect to the housing.

Thus, in accordance with the embodiment in FIGS. 1 and 2, plate 20 canbe quickly and easily installed across the open bottom of the housing ofthe mower by simply hooking springs 25 into the eye bolts providedtherefor. The lawnmower is now a vacuum cleaner and can be used to cleandebris efficiently from sidewalks, driveways, and the like. When it isdesired to use the mower for cutting grass, the plate can be quickly andeasily removed by simply unhooking springs 25 from the eye bolts andremoving the plate.

FIG. 4 shows an alternate arrangement for removably attaching the bafflemember to a lawnmower. In this embodiment, the baffle member includesplate 30 having opening 31. Plate 30 is held in position across thebottom opening of housing 32 of the mower by an elongated flexible strapor cord 33 which extends across the top of mower housing 32 and isconnected at opposite ends to eye bolts 34 in plate 30. Preferably,strap 33 is made of elastic material or, alternatively, includes aspring. Two or more of such straps would be used to support the plate inposition.

It may be desirable to extend the length of the horizontal duct formedbetween the surface being vacuumed and the baffle member to increase thetendency to pull debris into the housing, particularly from the side ofthe mower. Such an arrangement is shown in FIG. 5 where plate 36 extendslaterally and forwardly beyond the mower housing, shown dotted. Openingsare provided for front wheels 37.

The relationship of the area of the horizontal duct with the opening inthe baffle member can be adjusted by changing the shape as well as thesize of the opening. For example, two arcuate openings can be used forthe baffle opening, such as openings 40 and 41 in plate 42, as shown inFIG. 6. This locates the baffle opening closer to the entrance to thehorizontal duct and reduces the amount the horizontal opening is reducedin size before the air reaches the baffle opening. This, in turn,reduces the distance that the debris must be moved laterally to reachthe baffle opening as the mower moves across the surface being vacuumed.In addition, this arrangement allows the opening to be positioneddirectly below cutting edges 43 of cutter blade 44 of the mower therebygetting the most immediate effect from the fan action of the blade.

Where the plate has two openings, such as in the embodiment in FIG. 6,that are substantially the same size, the flow of air into each baffleopening will have substantially the same velocity. It may be desirableto have air flowing at different velocities through the two openings. InFIG. 7, for example, plate 46 is provided with forward opening 47 thatis larger than trailing or rearward opening 48. Both openings aregenerally arcuate in shape and are located so that cutting portions 49on each end of the blade of the mower pass above the openings. With thisarrangement, the velocity of air through opening 48 will tend to besomewhat greater than that through opening 47, and as the mower is movedover the surface being vacuumed, the lighter material, such as driedgrass and leaves, will be pulled into front opening 47 and the heaviermaterial, such as small twigs, particles of dirt, wet grass, and thelike, will be pulled through opening 48 due to the increased flow of airtherethrough which is produced by restricting the opening through whichthe air flows into the housing of the mower.

An alternate arrangement for controlling the flow of air in the mowerhousing is shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. In this embodiment, the mowerhousing is of the type having an inner housing for the cutter blade thatis enclosed by an outer housing, which is typical of some mowers. Thus,housing 50 of the mower includes top plate 50a that is generallyrectangular in shape. It supports outside vertical walls 50b and aninner vertical wall 50c. The inner wall forms a generally circularchamber 51 in which is located cutter blade 52 of the mower. The outerwall provides support for the bearings and shaft that support wheels 53of the mower. In this embodiment, the baffle member, which compriseshorizontal plate 54, is connected at its outer edges to verticallyextending mounting member 55, which is rectangular in shape to extendaround the side walls of the housing. Bolts 56 connect the mountingmember to the housing in the position shown in FIG. 9, with opening 54apositioned for air to be pulled through the opening into chamber 51 bythe rotating cutter blade. In accordance with this embodiment, verticalskirt 57 extends around the mower housing and is attached to mountingmember 55. The skirt extends downwardly toward the surface beingvacuumed. The purpose of the skirt is to vary the opening into thehorizontal duct between plate 54 and the surface being vacuumed so thatthe flow of air will be greater in one direction than in another. In theembodiment shown, skirt 57 has a lower edge adjacent the surface beingvacuumed that tapers upwardly in the direction the mower is normallymoved. This provides a larger opening for the air being pulled under themower from the front and restricts the flow of air coming in under themower from the rear. By increasing the flow of air from the front, therewill be an increase in its turbulence and its ability to entrain debrisand carry it into the opening in the plate. The skirt is attached to themounting plates of the baffle by bolts 58 by providing a slot in theskirt through which the bolts extend. Thus, means are provided to allowthe distance between the lower edge of the skirt and the surface beingvacuumed to be adjusted as required, depending upon the height of themower above the ground when the attachment is placed on the mower toconvert it to a vacuum cleaner.

In FIG. 10, discharge opening 58 can be seen through which the debris isdischarged after it has been picked up into chamber 51. As stated above,usually a porous sack is connected to such discharge ports to collectthe debris for disposal somewhere else. In most mowers, the bottom sideof such discharge ports is left open. Preferably, the baffle means ofthis invention, such as plate 54, include a portion 54b that is designedto close the bottom of the discharge port to keep debris from fallingout this opening and also to prevent air from being pulled upwardlythrough the opening.

It may be desirable to improve the ability of the cutter blade to act asa fan by positioning the openings in the baffle member closer to the airdeflecting portions of the blade. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11,the baffle member includes plate 61 having two arcuate openings, such asshown in FIG. 6, which is mounted in position closing the opening in thebottom of housing 60 of the mower. Plate 61 has two arcuate openings 62and 63 through which the air is pulled into the housing of the mower.Positioned directly above the plate is second plate 64 having openings65 and 66 that match openings 62 and 63 in plate 61. The thickness ofplate 64 can be varied as desired to position the upper end of theopenings as close to the air moving portions of the cutter blade asdesired.

Where the baffle member is provided with more or less restrictedopenings that are positioned directly below the cutting portions of theblades as shown in FIGS. 6, 7, 8 and 11, pulses or air are generated bythe rotating blade which is very helpful in dislodging debris that isstuck to the surface being vacuumed, such as wet leaves and the like.Thus, the flow of the air in these embodiments is different from theflow of the air that occurs in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, whichtends to moderate the pulsing produced by the rotating blade andproduces a much more even flow of air into the housing.

Since the attachment of this invention is particularly useful forconverting a rotary lawnmower to a vacuum cleaner to be used to clean upafter trimming the edges around sidewalks and driveways, it may bedesirable from time to time to increase the vacuuming effect from theside of the lawnmower to help clean the cuttings and the like from thegrass adjacent to the sidewalk and also clean out the groove made by theedger blade. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the bafflemember comprises plate 70 which is attached to housing 71 of the mowerin any convenient manner, such as one of the ways described above. Inthis embodiment, plate 70 is provided with laterally extending portions70a and 70b having sides parallel to the direction of travel of themower. Arcuate opening 71 in plate 70 has a center portion that extendsacross the line of travel of the mower and end portions that aregenerally parallel to the line of travel. Means are provided to closeoff a portion of opening 71 to increase the velocity of the air flowingthrough the portion remaining open. In the embodiment shown, cover 72 isarcuate in shape and is supported by tabs 73 which allow the cover to bemoved along the arcuate opening to any desired position to cover up anyselected portion of the opening. As shown in FIG. 13, cover 72 ispositioned to cover the right hand side of opening 71, therebyincreasing the velocity of air flowing laterally between portion 70a ofthe plate and the sidewalk or driveway, shown in FIG. 12. As positioned,the vacuum cleaner will tend to pull material in from the grass adjacentto the sidewalk and also pick up material directly in front of the mowerto some extent. However, the purpose is to improve the ability of themower to clean the area where the grass has been edged along the side ofthe walk.

It may also be desirable from time to time to vary the size of theopening in the baffle plate. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, opening75 in baffle plate 76 may be arcuate or rectangular, as desired. It alsomay be positioned somewhere else with respect to the cutting blades. Asshown, it is in the middle more or less of the plate. On each side ofopening 75, plate 76 supports members 77 and 78. These members aregenerally U-shaped in cross section, as shown, and will fit over theedges of the opening to be supported by the plate. Either or both can bearranged to be moved. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, arcuate member78 has handle 79 which is connected thereto and extends out from underthe housing to allow an operator to move member 78 either toward or awayfrom arcuate member 77 on the other side of the opening, and therebychange the width of the opening to meet some particular condition. Forexample, if the mower is being used to pick up a large amount ofrelatively dry, light, and fluffy grass clippings, then the opening maybe increased without losing efficiency. On the other hand, if the debrisis relatively heavy and hard to move, then by reducing the size of theopening an increase in air velocity into the housing is obtained to helpmove this heavier stuff into the housing and off of the surface beingvacuumed. In this embodiment, the baffle means includes a generallyvertical portion comprising annular spacer 80 which locates baffle plate76 closer to the surface being vacuumed and also insures that themembers 77 and 78 are spaced below the cutter blade of the mower.

With the embodiment described above in connection with FIG. 1, thedistance between the baffle member and the surface being vacuumed can bechanged only by changing the height of the mower above the ground. Insome mowers, this can be done relatively easy, but in others it is moreof a problem and inconvenience. Probably, in most cases, the height ofthe mower for cutting grass will be such that it is too high to do asefficient a vacuuming job as it could do otherwise. Therefore, it isanother aspect of this invention to provide an attachment for a mowercomprising a baffle member that includes means to increase the depth ofthe chamber in which the cutter blade is located to move this opening ofthe baffle member of the attachment closer to the surface beingvacuumed. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 15, an attachment foraccomplishing this is shown. In this embodiment, baffle plate 81 hasforward generally horizontal portion 81a and rearward generallycup-shaped portion 81b. With this arrangement, opening 83 in therearward portion is located close to surface 82 without having to lowerthe mower on its wheels. The openings can be shaped in any desiredmanner, such as one of the ways described above. Opening 84 being in theforward section and spaced further from the surface than opening 83 willtend to pick up the lighter material, much in the way described inconnection with the embodiment of FIG. 7. Opening 83 being closer to thesurface will tend to have a better chance of picking up the heavierdebris. In this regard, opening 84 could be made substantially largerthan opening 83, as explained above, to allow the lighter material to bepulled more readily into the housing of the mower. In the embodimentshown in FIG. 15, the openings are rectangular in shape.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 16, 17, 18, and 19, an alternateembodiment of the invention is shown that is particularly efficient inlifting relatively heavy debris from the surface being vacuumed. In thisembodiment, housing 90 of the mower supports a baffle member thatincludes horizontal plate 91 and annular vertical flange member 92. Asshown, vertical flange 92 extends upwardly inside housing 90 in aposition to telescope relative to the housing to allow relative verticalmovement of the baffle member and the housing. Plate 91 has rectangularshaped opening 93. Flap 94 is pivotally connected to the trailing orrearward side of opening 93 by hinge 95. Plates 96 and 97 are located ateach end of opening 93 to support rod 98 in horizontal slots 99 in eachof the supporting plates. In this manner, rod 98 can be movedhorizontally in slots 99 to change the angle flap 94 makes with thehorizontal, and thus change the extent of opening available in plate 91.Such an adjustment would be made to adjust the flap to the height of themower above the ground or to improve the flow of air through theopening, or both.

An important feature of flap 94, however, is that it provides inclinedsurface 94a to support heavy debris as it is moved upwardly in thehousing. In other words, if sufficient turbulence can be provided tolift the debris onto inclined surface 94a, usually the upward flow ofair along the surface will be sufficient to carry it on into housing 90.

As explained above, in this embodiment baffle plate 91 has verticalannular flange 92 that extends into and telescopes with housing 90.Preferably, annular flange 92 is in sliding engagement with the insideof housing 90 so that the flow of air between the two is held to theminimum. The purpose of such a telescoping fit is to allow the bafflemember to move upwardly as required to clear obstructions that it mayencounter as it moves over a sidewalk or a driveway.

Means are provided to mount the baffle means on the housing to allowsuch relative movement. The means for so mounting the embodiment shownin FIGS. 16 and 17 is shown in FIG. 18, and includes U-bolt 100, whichis attached to outwardly extending flange 101 on housing 90. U-bolt 102extends through U-bolt 100 and in turn is connected to an extension ofplate 91. The distance between the top of U-bolt 102 and plate 101 isthe distance that the baffle plate can move upwardly to clearobstructions. This should be made compatible with the height of annularflange 92, of course.

As shown, flap 94 would generally tend to hang up on obstructions ratherthan move the plate upwardly, therefore skids are provided on each side,or in advance if desired, of the flap to engage the obstructions firstand move plate 91 upwardly before the flap engages the obstruction. Twosuch skids are provided, one of which is shown in FIG. 19. The skids areidentical and located on opposite sides of flap 94 in position to movethe plate upwardly before the flap gets hung up to the extent that theplate won't move up. The skids are of identical construction, so onlythe one shown in FIG. 19 will be described. It consists of a generallyV-shaped member 104 positioned so that surface 104a, the leading edge ofthe skid, will cam the plate upwardly when the skid meets anobstruction. Alternatively, skids could be carried by the flap to camthe flap upwardly into opening 93 to pass an obstruction. For example,as shown in FIG. 20, skid plate 105 is attached to the edge of the flap.The skid plate is in sliding engagement with end plate 96 and will camthe flap upwardly when the skid encounters an obstruction.

As explained above in connection with other embodiments of theinvention, it is often desirable that the light debris be pulled intothe housing toward the front of the housing through an opening that canbe spaced further from the surface being vacuumed than the rearwardportion of the opening through which the heavier debris is to be pulledinto the housing. One simple arrangement for accomplishing this is shownin FIG. 21. Many of the present day lawnmowers are designed so that theheight of the housing above the ground can be quickly and easilyadjusted without having to remove the wheels and place them in othermounting holes. With this latter type mower, however, the particularembodiment shown in FIG. 21 can be utilized to advantage.

In the embodiment shown, the attachment includes a baffle membercomprising plate 110 that is attached across the open bottom of housing111 of the mower in any convenient manner. Member 110 has opening 112through which air is drawn in housing 111 by the rotating cutter blade.As shown, the rearward portion of housing 111 has been moved toward thesurface being vacuumed by adjusting the rear wheels relative to thehousing while leaving the forward wheels supporting the housing at agreater distance from the surface. This in effect positions opening 112so that it is inclined upwardly in the direction of travel of the mower.This allows the lighter debris to be pulled into the higher forwardportion of the opening while the heavier debris is pulled into thelower, rearward portion of the opening.

In FIG. 22, an alternate embodiment of the attachment of FIG. 21 isshown. Only a portion of baffle member 114 adjacent the rear part ofhousing 115 is shown. Member 114 has a cross section that provides uppersurface 114a that is inclined upwardly from the opening in the member toprovide an inclined surface to support heavy debris as it is moved intothe housing by the moving air. The member also includes lower surface114b that is designed to be substantially parallel to surface 116 beingvacuumed, when the mower is tilted upwardly in front in the manner shownin FIG. 21. With surface 114b generally parallel to the surface beingvacuumed, the horizontal duct through which the air flows from the rearof the mower will be substantially uniform in vertical cross section.

In FIG. 23, baffle member 120 is substantially of the same crosssectional shape as baffle 114 of FIG. 21. In this embodiment, however,lower surface 120b is inclined upwardly in a rearward direction so thatthe cross-sectional area of the horizontal duct formed between thissurface and surface 121 being vacuumed decreases rapidly in crosssection toward the opening of the baffle member. This provides anincrease in the velocity of the air flow as it flows past the lowersurface into the opening, thereby increasing its ability to lift heavydebris upwardly onto inclined surface 120a of the baffle member.

The same effect can be obtained with baffle member 122 of FIG. 24. Thismember is made of a plate of generally uniform thickness to simplifyfabrication. It has downwardly inclined annular portion 122a and annularmounting flange 122b.

Preferably, the lower rear bevel edge of the plate in embodiments shownin FIGS. 22 and 23 are located substantially in line with the rear axisof the wheels of the mower. This allows the rear edge of the plate to bepositioned very close to the surface being vacuumed, while being easilydisengaged from obstructions because it moves directly with the rearwheels. Thus, the lift distance for disengaging the edge with anobstruction is held to a minimum. With the mower inclined, as shown,even with the rear edge of the opening adjacent to or very near thesurface being vacuumed, there is plenty of room toward the front end forlarge debris to enter and to be moved through the opening into themower. Further, with this rather larger opening between the blade of themower and the surface being vacuumed, the surface is exposed tosubstantial air turbulence which loosens and entrains pasted down leavesand debris and frees them for movement into the mower housing.

In the embodiment of FIG. 25, baffle member 124 comprises an annularring having opening 125 that is attached to housing 126 of the mower. Inthis embodiment, the forward edge of housing 126 is provided with hingedportion 127 having an inwardly extending flange 128 that forms part ofbaffle member 124 when in the position shown. Should it be desired tocut grass with the mower with the baffle member in place, hinged portion127 of the housing can be pivoted to the dotted line position shown toallow grass to reach cutter blades 129 through the front of the housing.

The embodiment of FIG. 26 is designed to provide a forward arcuateopening 130 that is spaced from the surface being vacuumed further thanthe rearward arcuate opening 131 much like the embodiment shown in FIG.15. In this embodiment, however, the portion of the baffle memberadjacent the ground can move upwardly to clear obstructions that itencounters on the surface being vacuumed. To accomplish this, the bafflemember is made in two portions. Mounting portion 132 is attached tohousing 133 of the mower, and has two arcuate cavities 134 and 135. Eachcavity has a slot in its lower side in which is located arcuate members136 and 137 in which are located openings 130 and 131, respectively. Thetwo arcuate members are connected together by plate 138 which isinclined upwardly from member 136 to member 137. Should an obstructionengage plate 138, it will move the arcuate members upwardly in cavities134 and 135 until the obstruction is cleared.

The embodiment of FIG. 27 has the advantage of locating opening 140close to surface 141 being vacuumed while being of relatively simplestructure. Baffle member 142 comprises a bowl shaped member that can beconveniently fabricated and is particularly adaptable for use oncircular housings, such as housing 143. This embodiment has theadvantages of closing off the lower opening of the housing to convertthe lawnmower to a vacuum cleaner, while at the same time lowering theopening to the housing through which the material is drawn, opening 140,to a point near the surface being vacuumed without having to lower theentire mower on its wheels.

FIGS. 28 and 29 show an alternate embodiment of this invention whereinthe opening is substantially vertical so that the debris is pulled alonga generally horizontal path into the cavity formed between the baffleand the housing. As shown, baffle member 145 is generally cup shapedhaving a flat bottom portion 145a that is generally parallel to surface146 being vacuumed. A window 147 is cut in the upwardly extendingsidewall of the cup shaped baffle member to provide the opening throughwhich debris is pulled into cavity 148 formed by mower housing 149 andthe baffle member. As stated above, with this arrangement, most of theair will be pulled from in front of the mower, and, thus, tend to pullthe debris directly into opening 147 before it is passed over by portion140a of the baffle member. In this embodiment, the baffle member isgenerally circular in configuration so opening 147 is more or lessarcuate, as shown in FIG. 29. If the housing of the mower is morerectangular than circular, then opening 47 could be made morerectangular also.

Since mower housings vary in shape and size between the different makersand the different models of each maker, it will be advantageous toprovide a mounting adapter for each different type of housing so thatthe same baffle member substantially can be used with any type of mowerhousing by simply changing the mounting adapter. As shown in FIG. 30,baffle member, such as baffle member 142 of FIG. 27, is shown attachedto mounting adapter 150. The adapter comprises cylindrical portion 151having outwardly extending substantially horizontal flange 152 attachedthereto. The outside diameter of cylindrical portion 151 is designed tomate with baffle member 153 and be attached thereto by mounting bolts154 which extend through openings in the vertical side wall of thebaffle member and engage tapped holes provided in cylindrical portion151 of the mounting adapter. Flange 152 can be designed for a particularmower housing and such an adapter can be provided for each of thepopular mower housings with which the attachment is to be used. In thismatter, only one baffle member 153 need be maintained in stock andmanufactured, and it can be attached to various shaped mower housings byproviding a mounting adapter designed for each such mower.

It may be desirable on occasion to provide an opening in the bafflemember of this invention that extends 360 degrees but is closed off inthe middle. Such an opening is shown in FIG. 31. There a baffle membercomprises plate 155 having centrally located opening 156 therein.Mounted in the center of the opening is circular disc 157 to close offthe center of the opening. The disc is supported by relatively thinsupport arms 158 which do not provide substantial interference to theflow of air through the opening. Disc 157, of course, can be of anydesired configuration to block off whatever portion of the opening thatis desired to block off.

As stated above, mower housings come in all shapes and sizes. Therearward part of the mower housings also vary in position with respectto the axis of rotation of the rear wheels. This is an importantconsideration in the design of the attachment of this invention,particularly where the rearward portion of the attachment is to bepositioned relatively close to the surface being vacuumed. For example,as shown in FIG. 32, rear wheels 160 rotate around axis 161. A portionof baffle member 162 is shown. If the baffle is located as shown in FIG.32 and the mower is being moved backwardly toward obstruction 163, thenrear wheels 160 will engage the obstruction presenting no problem. If,however, the baffle member extends rearwardly beyond the periphery ofrear wheels 160, as shown by dotted lines, then it will engageobstruction 163 and stop movement of the mower. This will requirelifting of the mower to move the baffle member upwardly far enough toclear the obstruction. Generally, mowers are moved by rotating themaround their rear wheels to move the front wheels off the ground.Obviously, with the baffle member engaging the obstruction as it wouldit if extended out to the dotted line position, then rotating theforward end of the mower upwardly around the axis of the rear wheelswould accomplish nothing. It would not move the baffle member out ofengagement with the obstruction, and in fact, it would move the bafflemember downwardly into engagement with the surface being vacuumed. Thiswould interfere further with movement of the mower. Therefore,preferably, the baffle member does not extend rearwardly beyond avertical plane extending through the axis of rotation of the rear wheelsof the mower, as shown in FIG. 33. So positioned, the rear wheels willgenerally lift the baffle member upwardly over any obstructions it mayencounter on moving rearwardly. Further, should the baffle member engagean obstruction that is located between the rear wheels, pushing down onthe handle of the mower to rotate the front of the mower upwardly sothat the mower can be more easily handled on two wheels will cause thebaffle member to move upwardly away from the surface and possibly highenough to clear the obstruction.

Thus, preferably, the baffle member does not extend rearwardly beyondthe vertical axis of rotation of the rear wheels, as shown in FIG. 33.If it does, however, it should not extend beyond the periphery of therear wheels for the reasons given above in connection with FIG. 32.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 34 and 35, the baffle member includeshorizontal plate 170 and skirt or flange 171 that extends downwardlyfrom the periphery of the plate. Conduit or chute like member 172 ispivotally attached to the rear side of opening 173 in plate 170. Theconduit is free to pivot around the longitudinal axis of hinge pin 174as it moves along the ground. Opening 173 is larger than the opening inthe upper end of conduit 172 and the portion of the opening between theconduit and plate 170 is closed by plate 175. This plate has one endattached to the horizontal plate 170 and the other end extends acrossthe opening into engagement with conduit 172. To allow the conduit topivot, this plate is made of thin resilient material that will bend asthe conduit moves upwardly as required for its movement over the ground,yet, will maintain contact with the conduit as it moves back to itsoriginal position.

Air is pulled into housing 176 of the mower through conduit 172 by therotating cutting blade. Downwardly extending skirt 171 serves toincrease the velocity of the air flowing between the lower edge of theskirt and the surface being cleaned. This improves the ability of thisattachment to move relatively large twigs and leaves into position to bepicked up by the air flowing through conduit 172.

In FIGS. 36 and 37, baffle member 180 is attached to housing 181 of themower by upwardly extending peripheral flanges 182. Located in anopening provided in baffle member 180 is wedge-shaped member 183. Thismember is generally U-shaped in cross-section with inclined surface 183aand downwardly extending side members 183b and 183c. The side membersride along the surface of the area being vacuumed and move thewedge-shaped member up and down relative to the baffle member asrequired by the surface being vacuumed. The movement of the wedge memberrelative to horizontal plate 180 is limited by tabs 184, which arepositioned to limit both the upper and downward travel of the wedgemember relative to plate 180. Debris is moved up inclined surface 183 ofthe wedge-shaped member as the air moves through the opening in thebaffle member into the housing of the mower.

In FIGS. 38 and 39, baffle member 186 has flap 187 pivotally connectedto the rear edge of the opening in the baffle by hinge pin 188. The flappivots downwardly into engagement with the surface being vacuumed. Stopscan be provided to limit the downward movement to space the flap fromthe surface, if desired. Attached to the lower side of baffle 186 areair flow controlling flaps 189, 190 and 191. Preferrably, these flapsare pivotally connected to the horizontal plate forming the bafflemember so that they will not limit the movement of the mower toward thesurface being vacuumed and will also pivot when they engage a fixedobject in the path of the mower. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 39, theair flow controlling flaps are arranged to direct the air toward theopening in the baffle member from two directions, both generally 45°from the direction of travel of the mower. Here the opening in thebaffle member and flap 187 is positioned on the right hand side of thelongitudinal axis of the mower to obtain the benefit of the moreturbulent movement of air cuased by placing the opening under thecutting edges of the cutter blade of the mower.

FIGS. 40 and 41 are similar to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 38 and 39.In the embodiment of FIG. 40, flap 192 is positioned generally along theline of travel of the mower and flaps 193, 194 and 195 are positioned todirect the air to the opening from a lateral direction and not fromdirectly in front of the mower.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 41, flap 196 is provided with lateralextensions 196a and 196b below baffle 186a. The flap with the extensionscombine with flap 197 to cause the air to tend to flow to the opening inthe baffle from opposite sides of the mower, as indicated by the arrows.

In all of these embodiments, the debris directly in front of the mowerwill be picked up because it will move under the pivoted flaps, such asflap 194 to be carried up flap 187 into the mower housing by the movingair. The flaps, however, serve to increase the ability of the attachmentto move debris that is not directly in the path of the opening intoposition to be picked up.

The embodiment in FIGS. 42, 43, and 44 is similar to the embodiment inFIG. 41 and is designed to improve the movement of debris laterally intoposition to be picked up by the attachment. It includes flap 200 whichis pivotally connected to the trailing edge of opening 201 in horizontalbaffle plate 202. The forward edge of the flap slides along the surfacebeing vacuumed as shown in FIG. 43. The flap has lateral extensions 200aand 200b that extend generally to the edge or horizontal baffle plate202. Located in front of flap 200 is flap 203. Flaps 204 and 205 arepositioned to act as extensions to flap 203 and extend laterally at anangle from flap 203 to help direct the air from the side of the mowerinto the space between flap 200 and flap 203. Extending laterally fromhorizontal baffle plate 202 on opposite sides are U-shaped conduits 206and 207. These conduits comprise horizontal upper plates 206a and 207a,respectively, which are pivotally connected to baffle plate 202. On theforward and trailing edges of plates 206a and 207a are downwardlyextending flaps 206b and 206c and 207b and 207c, respectively. Thedownwardly extending side flaps are pivotally connected to thehorizontal plates from which they depend so that they can move out ofthe way of obstructions and also so they will not limit the movement ofthe upper plates toward the surface being vacuumed. If desired, thepivotal movement of the top plates can be limited so that they will notpivot downwardly beyond a horizontal position. To further aid the flowof air laterally, flaps 208 and 209 are attached to the bottom side ofhorizontal plates 206a and 207a. These flaps cooperate with the otherflaps described above, to cause the air to move from the side of themower with a greater velocity than it would otherwise, to therebyimprove the movement of debris from the side of the mower into positionto be picked up on flap 200 and moved into the housing of the mower.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 45 and 46, flap 210 is pivotallyconnected to the rear edge of opening 211 in plate 212, which acts asthe horizontal baffle to close off the lower opening in mower housing213. In this embodiment, the opening for the air through which the aircan move into mower housing 213 is adjustable. This is accomplished bymounting support plate 214 on baffle plate 212 for movement toward oraway from flap 210. Support plate 214 carries on its outer and inclinedplate 215 which is generally parallel to flap 210 to corporate with theflap to provide a passageway for the air as it moves into the mowerhousing. Bolts 216 are used to connect support plate 214 to the baffleplate and when loosened, will allow the support plate to be adjusted toprovide the desired opening between the plate carried by the supportplate and the flap. This allows the velocity of the air moving into themower housing to be adjusted as required for the volume of air a givenmower can pull into its housing.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 47 and 48 is depicted to take advantage ofthe turbulence created in the air drawn into the mower housing at thecutting edges of the blade. As explained above, when the opening of thebaffle plate is around the center of the mower, the turbulence producedby the cutting edges of the cutter is attenuated to some extent and theflow of air into the housing is relatively smooth. Where the opening isdirectly below the path of the cutting edge of the blade, however, apulsating flow of air is produced. This aids in the picking up of largedebris or debris that is wet and tends to stick to the surface beingcleaned. In the embodiment shown in these figures, openings 220 and 221are located in baffle plate 222 so that the cutting edge of the bladespasses over the openings. Located in the openings are flaps 222 and 223.These flaps are pivotally connected to baffle plate 224 and extenddownwardly in the opposite direction from which the blade rotates to actas inclined planes to assist the movement of the debris into the mowerhousing.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 49 and 50, flap 225 is pivotallyconnected to the edge of the opening in horizontal plate 226 of thebaffle member. Extending outwardly from the opening in the baffle memberis U-shaped conduit 227, which is shaped in the manner shown in FIG. 50.This increases the effective width that the mower can clean. If it isdesired to increase the velocity of the air through the conduit, flap228 which is pivotally connected to the forward end of the conduit canbe pivoted into position at least to partially close the opening andincrease the velocity of the air.

Along the lower edge of the conduit are provided flaps 229 which arepivotally connected to the lower edge of the conduit and serve to engagethe surface being vacuumed and limit as much as possible the amount ofair that comes in under the conduit from the side.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 51 and 52, flap 230 is connected tobaffle 231 and functions in the manner of the flap described above. Inthis embodiment, however, cover plate 232 is connected to plate 231 andcan be moved toward or away from the flap to vary the opening betweenthe cover member and the flap. This allows the flow of air to beadjusted for the particular mower and the conditions under which theattachment is being used.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 53 and 54, the baffle plate is providedwith two openings on each side of the center line of the mower and flaps235 and 236 are mounted in the openings. Diverting flap 237 is connectedto the baffle plate and positioned as shown in FIG. 54 to cause the airto move laterally on either side of the baffle plate toward the openingsin the baffle member. This embodiment is particularly designed to removethe effects if the dead space along the center line of the lawn mowerwhere the volume of air moved by the blades is reduced.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 55 and 56, conduit 240 is connected tothe baffle member to discharge onto an inclined ramp that spiralsupwardly from the opening in the conduit to a level approximately equalto the bottom of the housing of the mower, the inclined ramp isindicated by the number 241. With this arrangement, the debris movingout of conduit 240 is provided with an inclined surface to support thedebris as it is moved into the mower housing.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 57, the baffle member includeshorizontal rim portion 245 and inclined or conically-shaped portion 246.The opening is cut in the conically-shaped portion of the baffle member,so that at the rear, the inclined wall extends substantially intocontact with the surface being vacuumed, whereas, at the forward end,the lower edge of the wall is substantially spaced from this surface.Thus, with this type baffle member, an inclined surface at the rear isprovided by the inclined wall section 246 and the air is caused to flowfrom the forward area of the mower into the opening and up the inclinedrearward surface into the housing.

The embodiment in FIG. 58 is substantially the same as that in FIG. 57with the exception that the rearward inclined portion does not extend tothe ground but is supplied with pivoted flap 247, which acts as anextension of the inclined rearward surface but one that can adjust tovarying surfaces over which it travels.

The embodiment in FIGS. 59 and 60 is basically the same as that of FIG.58 except flap 248 is positioned to extend laterally to again takeadvantage of the tendency of the cutting edges of the blades to causeturbulence and to improve the ability of the blades to cause the debristo move up the flap. Flap 248 serves the same purpose as flap 247 but ispositioned more directly under the cutting edge portion of the blades.

FIGS. 61 and 62 illustrate the preferred method of attaching the flapsto the horizontal portion of the baffle member. As shown, flap 250 hasportion 250a that extends through the opening 251 in plate 252. As bestseen in FIG. 62, bolts 253 extend through openings provided in portion250a of the flap and openings provided in baffle plate 252. The weightof the flap, as shown in FIG. 63, will hold the nut up against thebottom of plate 252. Should it be necessary for the flap to pivotupwardly, it will be free to do so and not be restrained by the nut. Thenut, in effect, can act as an adjustment to determine the maximum anglethat the flap extends downwardly from the plate and also as a hingeallowing the flap to freely pivot upwardly from the maximum angle. Airdiverting flap 255 is connected in somewhat the same way to plate 252 bybolts 256. The degree of tightness of the bolt will determine the anglebetween flap 255 and the plate, and also limit the downward travel ofthe flap relative to the plate, while allowing the flap to pivotupwardly as required.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 63, flap 260 is fixed to baffle plate261. One or more wheels 262 are positioned preferrably with their axlein vertical alignment with the forward end of the flap, to keep the flapthe desired distance above the surface being cleaned. For ease ofoperation, wheels should be adjusted to combine with rear wheels 263 tosupport the mower, holding front wheels 264 above the surface beingcleaned.

In all of the embodiments employing flaps to provide an inclined surfaceto raise the debris into the mower housing, the lower edges may bebeveled as are the lower edges of flap 248 in FIGS. 59 and 60. Thesebeveled edges act as skids that will raise the flap upwardly overobstructions the flap may encounter.

If the flaps are relatively light, it is possible for the air beingpulled into the mower housing by the cutter blade to move the flapupwardly into the path of the cutter blade. To prevent this means forlimiting the upward movement of the pivotal flap should be provided.Flap extensions 196a and 196b serve this purpose in the embodiment shownin FIG. 41, as well as the function of directing air described above.For stop purposes only, the extensions could be much shorter and onlyone would be required.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one welladapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinabove set forth,together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherentto the apparatus.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are ofutility and may be employed without reference to other features andsubcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of theclaims.

As many as possible embodiments may be made of the apparatus of thisinvention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to beunderstood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanyingdrawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

I claim:
 1. A removable attachment for converting a rotary mower to avacuum cleaner for picking up debris on sidewalks, driveways, and thelike, where the mower has a propeller-type grass-cutting blade rotatingin a housing having a discharge port and an opening in the bottomthereof through which grass normally extends to be cut by the rotatingblade, said attachment comprising a baffle member extending across theopening in the housing and having an opening therein smaller than theopening in the housing, said baffle member including a flap memberattached to the baffle member and extending under the opening, said flapmember being inclined downwardly to provide an inclined surface up whichdebris can be moved into the opening by air pulled through the openingby the rotating blade of the mower, means attaching the flap member tothe baffle member for pivotal movement around a horizontal axis to allowthe flap member to pivot toward and away from the baffle member asrequired by the surface over which the mower is moving, an air flowcontrolling means positioned below the baffle member to direct airtoward the opening and the inclined surface of the flap member, andmeans for releasably attaching the baffle member to the housing torestrict the flow of air between the member and the housing sufficientlyto cause most of the air pulled into the housing by the blade to flowthrough the opening.
 2. The attachment of claim 1 wherein said airflowcontrolling means includes lateral extensions attached to the flapmember and extending below the baffle member to direct air toward theopening and the inclined surface of the flap member.
 3. The attachmentof claim 1 in which the air flow controlling means includes a secondflap attached to and extending downwardly from the baffle member.
 4. Theattachment of claim 3 in which the second flap is positioned to increasethe flow of air from the side of the mower to the opening in the bafflemember.
 5. The attachment of claim 1 in which the air flow controllingmeans includes a second flap extending laterally of the mower to directair from the side of the mower to the opening in the baffle member.